NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) — Roche plans to buy an Alnylam research facility in Germany, has licensed Alnylam’s RNAi IP, and will work with the RNAi company on drug-discovery projects, Roche said today.
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Under the agreement, worth $331 million plus unknown milestones and royalties, Roche will acquire the Alnylam lab in Kulmbach, along with about 40 employees, once the deal is cleared by regulators in around 30 days, Roche said. Roche will use the site to create a Center of Excellence for RNAi therapeutics research.
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The non-exclusive license, meantime, will give Roche access to Alnylam’s RNAi IP for use in drug research.
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The companies will collaborate on one or more disease targets that have yet to be determined in exchange for royalty payments.
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The agreement calls for Roche to pay Alnylam $331 million in up-front cash plus an equity investment for 1.975 million shares of Alnylam’s common stock at $21.50 a share, or just under five percent of Alnylam’s outstanding shares.